All about discipline for UNI football against Cal Poly

CEDAR FALLS - There was a buzzword floating around the UNI-Dome and the UNI football practice field this week.

'Discipline.”

That's what it will take for the Panthers (1-1) to corral and stop the Cal Poly triple option offense that has put up an average of 307 rushing yards in its first two games. Defensive linemen, linebackers and the secondary all have specific assignments.

Sticking to them means success. Wavering means a long plane ride home.

'It's all discipline this week,” said Coach Mark Farley. 'If somebody comes out of sync then it becomes a big play. Your defensive line, no matter how good they are sometimes, (the opposing team) is always reading off them. So it kind of takes them out of the mix a little bit and makes your secondary and linebackers have to be very disciplined.

'You have to have your eyes on the target and your target being your responsibility. Take your eyes off your target for a split second and that's when he's out the shoot and in your end zone.”

The shift from two up-tempo offenses in Iowa State and Eastern Washington to this run heavy system of the Mustangs (1-1) is much easier physically than mentally.

With that, then, while the scheme to defend the different style changes, so do the level of responsibility for each group of defenders. The defensive line is at a tremendous disadvantage against the triple option, so it falls on the guys behind them to be even more focused and stay in their lanes.

The mental strain it puts on defenders can stick with players for a long time. Farley knows that first hand.

'It's your alley runners, your quarterback fitters and your fullback fitter (that have the most responsibility,” Farley said. 'It's that discipline of who you must tackle, even if you don't know he has the ball. You've still got to make that tackle, and thus it's easier said than done. Because by the time you figure it out, you've got the wrong guy or think you're going to go do something else and your guy spits past you.

'I personally played this offense when we played Georgia Southern. I know what it feels like. I tackled the fullback a lot of times and he didn't have the ball. The times I didn't tackle him he scored. It's not an easy offense to play.”

That said, the defenders seemed almost giddy to get to defend something so unique. Linebacker De'Angelo Jennings had a wide smile when talking about it - though, to be fair, he's always smiling - and defensive lineman Karter Schult expressed his excitement at deciding a game in the trenches.

'With the defensive line, we're going to get after it in the trenches with the big guys,” Schult said. 'Everyone shares, pretty much, equal responsibility. In the option game, if one guy's off, they can have big plays.

'Last week against Eastern Washington, I felt a little bit out of my element as a defensive lineman, just because you expect a little more run. I think this week I'm more excited because it's a ‘you're going to run at me and if we don't stop you, you're going to beat us. But if we stop you it'll be us stopping you.' That's what I'm most excited about.”

The UNI defense has long loved defending the run and has a proud tradition of doing so.

It'll take another hallmark defensive effort in that area to leave San Luis Obispo, Calif. with a win and come back to Cedar Falls ready for Missouri Valley Football Conference play with a winning record.

'If you're well prepared for any obstacle, you can defeat it,” Jennings said. 'Our defense works. We've got great DBs, great defensive linemen. People try to find ways to beat us, and they keep coming up short.

'The key thing we're looking at this whole week is discipline. Each guy has their own guy, own gap. We're going to have to focus and make sure we have our jobs controlled. Control what you can control and we'll go from there.”

UNI and Cal Poly kick off at 9:30 p.m. Iowa time and the game can be seen on CBS in the Cedar Rapids and Waterloo/Cedar Falls areas.

l Comments: (319) 368-8884; jeremiah.davis@thegazette.com